When I crowned the TP-Link Archer BE3600 the Best Budget Router in our current recommendation for the best WiFi routers, I wondered if I was doing a disservice to the Archer by even using the word “budget.” It’s not slow. It doesn’t use outdated technology. The wee router, which does admittedly look like some kind of alien claw with its sprawling antennae, has been nothing but fast and reliable in my months of usage. But at $87 for a router that could satisfy the needs of most modern-day small households without a hiccup, it is a budget pick. It just offers better-than-budget performance.

As a two-band router, the Archer BE3600 includes two frequencies: 2.4 gigahertz (GHz), which is slower but penetrates physical obstacles and reaches farther; and 5 GHz, which offers a much faster connection—up to 2.9 gigabits per second (Gbps) versus up to 688 megabits per second (Mbps)—but struggles to maintain a strong signal through walls and furniture to far away devices. Many more expensive routers have a 6-GHz band, too, for an even faster connection, but I’ve found the 5-GHz band plenty fast to stream 4K videos on my television and 8K videos on my computer. My apartment isn’t large, but it is an old brick building from the 1920s that sometimes challenges routers with weaker connections. The Archer BE3600’s 2.4-GHz band never saddled me with a weak signal, even when I had several thick walls between it and my iPad or iPhone.

It adheres to the WiFi 7 standard, which only just began to hit the U.S. market in 2023. Given that there are plenty of WiFi 6 routers still available, picking up a WiFi 7 router for this price is remarkable. WiFi 7 is even faster than WiFi 6. And by gaining the ability to transmit and receive data across multiple frequency bands simultaneously, it’s even better at managing lots of simultaneous device connections.

Don’t sweat the introduction of the WiFi 8 standard, which is only very slowly beginning to appear on new models throughout 2026. Unlike most evolutionary progressions of past WiFi standards, WiFi 8 doesn’t improve upon potential speeds over WiFi 7, but rather prioritizes a more reliably strong WiFi signal in environments crowded with lots of electronic, interference-causing devices.

If I had an entire family of four living with me I’d consider the Netgear RS200 Nighthawk, which can handle nearly double the potential combined data rate. But that difference in capabilities doesn’t become apparent when it’s just people using the internet, downloading or uploading large files, gaming, or streaming high-res video.

Those of you who live in a household of many roommates or a large family should consider an even more robust router, such as the Netgear RS700S Nighthawk, which can handle more bandwidth-hungry devices simultaneously connected to WiFi. And if you need to outfit your 3,500-square-foot home or 6,000-square-foot small business with WiFi, then you’re better off with a mesh network. In layman’s terms, that’s a connected system of two or more router-like devices called nodes that are positioned around a large building to cover more area.

Everybody else, though, will be more than fine with the Archer BE3600, even if you consider yourself a heavy online gamer who needs the fastest connection or for a household of three people to be able to stream three movies in 4K at the same time.

TP-Link had already been in the Feds’ sights for its past links to China when it found itself wrapped up last month in a stunningly wide-ranging government ban of all new foreign-made router models. Almost every router on the market is made outside of the U.S., even the TP-Link Archer BE3600. You don’t have to rush to your computer to panic-buy one, though. Because it’s already been cleared by the FCC for use in the U.S., TP-Link can continue to import and sell new ones. The existing stock isn’t the last batch that you’ll be able to buy on American soil. That goes for all routers and mesh networks currently sold in the States.

The Archer BE3600 has consistently sold for $87 on Amazon since December 2025, “down” from its $120 retail price. So it seems to be on one of those perennial “sales.” Discounted or not, it’s a fast, reliable router for a downright cheap price. And with its performance over WiFi 7, it could be five or so years before you even need to think about replacing it.

Shop the TP-Link Archer BE3600 WiFi Router